Many Office 365 plans also include the desktop version
of the latest Office applications, which
users can install across multiple computers
and devices. The fully installed applications
include: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote,
Outlook, Publisher, and Access. (Publisher
and Access are available on PC only.) And
you can install them across multiple devices,
including PCs, Macs, Android tablets, Android
phones, iPad, and iPhone. When you have an
active Office 365 subscription that includes
the desktop version of Office, you always
have the most up-to-date version of the applications.

The Office 365 plans that are online-only are a great
choice for certain business needs, and they
are designed to work with the latest version
of Office, Office 2013, and Office 2011 for
Mac. Previous versions of Office, such as
Office 2010 and Office 2007, may work with
Office 365 with reduced functionality.
Get more details about which Office versions are supported. NOTE: This compatibility with
Office does not include the Exchange Online
Kiosk or Office 365 Enterprise K1 plans.

All Office 365 plans are paid for on a subscription
basis, monthly or annually.

Microsoft Office.
"Microsoft Office” is the name we still use
for our familiar productivity software. Office
suites are available as a one-time purchase
and include applications such as Word, Excel,
and PowerPoint, which can be installed on
only one PC or Mac. The applications are
not automatically updated; to get the latest
version, you can purchase the product again
when the new version becomes available. The
latest versions currently available for one-time
purchase are Office 2016 for Windows and
Office 2016 for Mac. These suites do not
come with any of the cloud-based services
included in Office 365.

Will Office 365 work with my copy of Office?

Office 365 is designed to work with the latest version of
Office, Office 2013, and Office 2011 for Mac. Previous
versions of Office, such as Office 2010 and Office
2007, may work with Office 365 with reduced functionality.
Get more details about which Office versions are supported. If you have Office 2003 or an earlier
version, you will need to update to a newer version
of Office in order to use Office 365; or you can
subscribe to one of the many Office 365 plans that
include the latest version of Office. In addition
to getting the latest version of Office as part of
your subscription, you will also get automatic updates,
so your Office will always be up to date.
Compare plans.

How many devices can I install Office on if I have an Office 365 Business or ProPlus subscription?

Office 365 Business and ProPlus subscribers can install Office on up to 5 PCs or Macs, 5 tablets, and 5 smartphones. You can count hybrid Windows devices, such as the Microsoft Surface Pro, as either a PC or a tablet.

Is Internet access required for Office 365?

Internet access is required to install and activate
all Office 365 plans and to manage your subscription
account. Internet connectivity is also required
to access Office 365 cloud productivity services,
including email, conferencing, IT management,
and other services.

Many Office 365 plans also include the desktop version
of Office, for example,
Office 365 Business Premium and
Office 365 Enterprise E3. One of the benefits of having
the desktop version of Office applications
is that you can work offline and have the
confidence that the next time you connect
to the Internet all your work will automatically
sync, so you never have to worry about your
documents being up to date. Your desktop
version of Office is also automatically kept
up to date and upgraded when you connect
to the Internet, so you always have the latest
tools to help you work.
Compare Office 365 plans.

What is the cloud?

“The cloud" is a friendly way of describing web-based
computing services that are hosted outside
of your organization. When you use cloud-based
services, your IT infrastructure resides
off your property (off-premises), and is
maintained by a third party (hosted), instead
of residing on a server at your home or business
(on-premises) that you maintain. With Office
365, for example, information storage, computation,
and software are located and managed remotely
on servers owned by Microsoft. Many services
you use every day are a part of the cloud—everything
from web-based email to mobile banking and
online photo storage. Because this infrastructure
is located online or “in the cloud,” you
can access it virtually anywhere, from a
PC, tablet, smartphone, or other device with
an Internet connection.

How many users does Office 365 support?

Office 365 is highly scalable and can support everything
from a one-person business to companies with
tens of thousands of users:

Office 365 Business plans are best for companies
with one to 300 users.

Office 365 Enterprise plans fit organizations
ranging in size from a single employee
to 50,000-plus users.

What mobile apps are available for Office?

Office provides the following apps:

Office for Android™: View, create and edit documents
with touch-friendly Word,
Excel and PowerPoint apps.
You can count on Office for
Android to keep your content
and formatting intact so
the document looks great
when you’re back on your
PC or Mac. In Word, add comments
or track changes while you
work together with others.
Review and update Excel spreadsheets
and easily add formulas or
charts. Make changes to PowerPoint
presentations and project
them wirelessly on a big
screen.

Office for iPad®: View, create and edit documents
with touch-friendly Word,
Excel and PowerPoint apps.
You can count on Office for
iPad to keep your content
and formatting intact so
the document looks great
when you’re back on your
PC or Mac. In Word, add comments
or track changes while you
work together with others.
Review and update Excel spreadsheets
and easily add formulas or
charts. Make changes to PowerPoint
presentations and project
them wirelessly on a big
screen.

Office Mobile: Office Mobile is preinstalled
on Windows Phone 8 and is
available for select models
of iPhone® and Android phones.
Office Mobile offers great
Office content viewing and
on-the-go content editing
capabilities. And you can
count on Office Mobile to
keep your content and formatting
intact so the document still
looks great when you’re back
on your PC or Mac. Office
Mobile for iPhone and Android
phones can be used for free
for non-commercial use, simply
download the app from the
store on your phone.

In order to edit or create documents
or to access documents stored
in SharePoint and OneDrive
for Business on premises,
you must have a qualifying
Office 365 plan: Office 365
Business Premium, Office
365 Enterprise E3, E4, and
E5, Office 365 U.S. Government
E3 and E4, Office 365 Education
Plus, Office 365 ProPlus,
and Office 365 University.

Outlook Mobile: Windows Phone 8 includes a pre-installed
version of Outlook that you can use
to access your Outlook.com, Office
365, or Exchange email.

OneNote: You
can use the mobile OneNote app to
access your notes while on the go.
This app is available on Windows
Phone 8, iPhone, iPad, and Android
phones.

OWA: If you
have an Office 365 subscription that
includes Exchange Online, you can
use the OWA app to sort, scan, and
respond to email, and stay on top
of your schedule. This app is available
on iPhone and iPad.

Lync Mobile: If your organization uses Skype for
Business or the newest version of
Lync, you can use the mobile Lync
app or the Skype for Business mobile
app, to stay connected while on your
mobile device. This app is available
on Windows Phone 8, iPhone, iPad,
and Android phones.

SharePoint Newsfeed: If your organization uses the newest
version of SharePoint, you can use
the SharePoint Newsfeed app to access
your newsfeed from your mobile device.
This app is available on Windows
Phone 8, iPhone, and iPad.

Where's my country/region? I do not see it in the dropdown list on the signup page.

Office 365 is offered in a number of countries/regions
and languages. If your country’s/region’s
name doesn’t appear in the list, we have
not currently launched a version of Office
365 for your market. We’re continuing to
launch Office 365 in new markets and will
publicly announce when we launch Office 365
in any new market.

Getting started

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What do I need to install when I sign up for Office 365?

You don't need to install anything in order to use
Office 365.

To help you easily connect your desktop version of
the latest version of Office, Office 2013,
Office 2010, or Office 2007 to Office 365,
Microsoft provides Office 365 customers an
installable piece of software—called “Office
Desktop Setup”—at no charge.

Office Desktop Setup provides many benefits, including:

Automatically detecting necessary updates.

Installing updates and components upon approval
or silently from a command line.

Automatically configuring Outlook and Microsoft
Skype for Business for use with Microsoft
Office 365.

Yes. If you purchase Office 365 licenses for the
accounts you create during your free trial,
the information and configuration for these
users' accounts will remain intact. Once
your free trial expires, you won't be able
to continue using Office 365 for free. You
will have an additional 30 days to purchase
Office 365 before your account information
is erased. Once your trial account information
has been erased, it cannot be retrieved.

How do I set up my Office 365 services?

Office 365 setup provides step-by-step guidance.
In just a few quick steps you can sign up
for Office 365, set up your organization's
domain name and add user accounts, install
Office, and move your existing email to Office
365.

Support and pricing

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What forms of payment can I use?

You can pay with all major credit cards, and your subscription
amount will appear on your credit card statement.
For Office 365 Enterprise, Office 365 Business, and
standalone plans, you have the option to receive
an invoice and, depending on your choice of services,
you will be billed monthly or annually. You receive
an email message when your invoice is ready to be
viewed and, if a purchase order (PO) number is entered
when you buy your subscription, that number is included
in your invoice.

What’s the difference between monthly, annual, and annual commitment payments?

To provide customers with the greatest amount of flexibility,
different payment options are available.

Office 365 Business, Business Essentials, and Business
Premium plans are available for monthly commitment
payment or annual commitment payment.

Monthly commitment payment: You pay month by month, and you can
cancel at any time.

Annual commitment payment: You sign up for a one-year subscription,
but you can choose to pay month to
month or pay for the entire year
at the time you sign up. There is
a discount for using this payment
option.

The Office 365 Enterprise plans (including standalone
Enterprise plans such as Exchange Online)
and Office 365 ProPlus are available for
annual commitment payment.

Annual commitment payment: You sign up for a one-year subscription,
but you can choose to pay month to
month or pay for the entire year
at the time you sign up.

Do you offer volume discounts to businesses?

Yes, discounts are available for Office 365 enterprise
agreement customers (typically 250+ licenses)
who want to purchase through volume licensing.
A Microsoft expert can help you explore the
purchasing options for large enterprises
and help you determine which is best for
you. Learn more about
volume licensing. Find a
Microsoft expert.

Can I switch to other Office 365 plans?

Yes. If you need to upgrade, you can transition your
account to a different plan. For example,
you can upgrade from an Office 365 Business
plan to an Office 365 Enterprise plan.

In most cases, you can use the Switch plans wizard
in your Admin center to upgrade your plan.
If your subscription has more than 300 users
or if you used a prepaid card to purchase
your plan, the Switch plans wizard is not
available. Plans that are not eligible for
the Switch plans wizard can be upgraded manually.
Learn more about
upgrading Office 365 plan.

NOTE: When you upgrade your account, your domain
name is transferred to your new account,
whether you brought your own domain name
to the Office 365 account or you set up a
domain name with Office 365.

Can I mix and match different Office 365 plans?

Yes, you can mix and match Office 365 plans. Please
note that there are some license limitations
at the plan level. The Office 365 Business,
Business Essentials, and Business Premium
plans each have a limit of 300 users, while
the Enterprise plans are for an unlimited
number of users. For example, you can purchase
300 Business Premium seats, 300 Business
Essentials seats, and 500 Enterprise E3 seats
on a single tenant.

Can I cancel my subscription at any time?

You can cancel your subscription at any time. However,
depending on the product and the type of
subscription you have, there may be a penalty
for canceling before the end of your contract.
For subscriptions with a monthly commitment
payment, there is no penalty for canceling
your contract at any time. Annual commitment
subscriptions that are paid month to month
may incur some penalties if canceled early.
Annual commitment subscriptions that are
paid up front do not receive a refund if
canceled prior to the full contract period.
Read the complete
Microsoft Online Subscription Agreement.

What happens to my data if I cancel my subscription?

Your data is yours. If you decide to cancel your
Office 365 subscription, you can download
your data—for example, your email and documents
on team sites—and save it to another location.
You should save your data before you cancel.
After you cancel your subscription, data
associated with your Office 365 account will
be available to your administrator(s) in
a limited function account for 90 days.

How do I change my password?

I will need extra help setting up Office 365. Who can help?

Microsoft experts are trained IT and development
companies that can help you move to Office
365 or develop custom solutions for your
business. You can find a listing of all of
our Microsoft experts in
Microsoft Pinpoint.

What happened to the Office 365 Small Business plan?

Office 365 Small Business has been renamed Office
365 Business Essentials. Office 365 Business
Essentials includes all the features of the
Office 365 Small Business plan, plus additions
and improvements. For example, Active Directory
has been added to Office 365 Business Essentials
and the maximum number of users has been
increased from 25 to 300.

What happened to the Office 365 Small Business Premium plan? What happened to the Office 365 Midsize Business plan?

The Office 365 Small Business Premium and Office
365 Midsize Business plans have been replaced
by one new plan, called “Office 365 Business
Premium.” Office 365 Business Premium combines
the best features and services into one plan,
with a maximum number of users of 300.

Office 365 Nonprofit FAQ

Information, offers, and sign-up instructions

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What is Office 365 Nonprofit?

Designed to help nonprofits and NGOs do more good, this global
offering provides eligible customers with access
to Office 365, Microsoft’s best-in-class cloud-based
productivity and collaboration tools. Nonprofits
can learn more, check their eligibility, and apply
for a donation by visiting the
Microsoft Nonprofits site.

How do I get the Office 365 Nonprofit offer?

If eligibility is confirmed, Office 365 Nonprofit offers will become available in the Office 365 admin portal.

Go to the License Management tab in the admin portal to assign your users to any of the Office 365 Nonprofit offers, including the donated E1 and Business Essential offers.

How can I acquire Office 365 offers that are not included in Office 365 Nonprofit offers?

Some Office 365 offers are not included in the Office 365 Nonprofit program. In the case of standalone offers, those features or workloads are usually included in one of the Office 365 Nonprofit program’s offers, such as the donated Office 365 Nonprofit E1 offer or the discounted Office 365 Nonprofit E3 offer. We may expand the Office 365 Nonprofit offers in the future but have no plans to do so at this time. However, a customer that has become eligible for Office 365 Nonprofit offers can still purchase commercial offers going forward.

If I’m approved for Office 365 Nonprofit offers, can I still purchase commercial offers?

Yes. A customer that has become eligible for Office 365 Nonprofit offers can purchase both commercial and nonprofit offers going forward.

Where do I go for support?

Nonprofit customers should use the standard support channel for Office 365. Details on Office 365 support options are available
here.

What types of nonprofits and NGOs are eligible for a donation?

Eligible organizations: Nonprofits and non-governmental organizations must be recognized as charitable organizations in their respective countries in order to be eligible for Microsoft Nonprofit Programs. Eligible organizations must also operate on a not-for-profit basis and have a mission to benefit the local community, which could include but is not limited to:

Providing relief to the poor.

Advancing education.

Improving social welfare.

Preserving culture.

Preserving or restoring the environment.

Promoting human rights.

Establishing civil society.

For a detailed explanation of eligibility criteria and links to country-specific eligibility criteria, visit the
Eligibility page.

How can an organization verify whether it qualifies to receive Office 365 Nonprofit?

To be validated as an eligible nonprofit, you must sign up for the Microsoft Nonprofits program and provide the organization’s basic information to kick start the validation process. Eligible organizations must hold recognized charitable status as defined in their countries in order to be eligible. Eligible organizations must operate on a not-for-profit basis and have a mission to benefit the local community. If an organization is not eligible for Office 365 as a donation, it may be eligible for other services depending on its legal status and mission. For a detailed explanation of eligibility criteria, visit the
Eligibility page.

How long does it take to find out if my request has been approved for a donation of Office 365 Nonprofit?

Microsoft works with its software donation partner TechSoup Global to determine if a nonprofit fits its broad eligibility requirements. We strive to make eligibility determinations as quickly as possible, and the process can take up to 20 business days. This timeframe can vary depending on nonprofit responsiveness to requests for additional documentation. Required documentation may include the certification or registration provided the nonprofit’s governing body. For example, in the U.S. we require a copy of the IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter.

For how long is the validation good?

Organizations need to be re-evaluated for nonprofit eligibility every two years. We will be defining how this process is enforced and facilitated in the coming months.

Office 365 Nonprofit is intended primarily for employees of eligible nonprofit organizations. Nonprofit members or beneficiaries are not eligible for Office 365 Nonprofit licensing. Nonprofits may license volunteers that have significant fiduciary or managerial responsibilities for the organization, such as members of the Board of Directors. A volunteer of an eligible nonprofit organization can receive a license for Office 365 only if they meet all three of the following tests:

The volunteer is accountable for specific activities and results within the nonprofit organization that are defined by a written volunteer position description.

The volunteer’s role with the nonprofit is a year-round ongoing role or is a seasonal or part-time role that reoccurs annually.

The volunteer will not use Office 365 for personal uses that result in income to the person who is volunteering.

How does an existing commercial Office 365 customer sign up for one of the new nonprofit offers?

Commercial customers wishing to transition to a nonprofit offer should speak with customer support to understand the options available to them and ensure a smooth transition. Users that have commercial licenses that become approved for nonprofit offers will still retain their commercial licenses. Existing customers may locate their support contact information
here.

Users that have commercial licenses that become approved for nonprofit offers will still retain their commercial licenses.

Eligibility and validation

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What types of nonprofits and NGOs are eligible for a donation?

Eligible organizations: Nonprofits and non-governmental organizations must be recognized as charitable organizations in their
respective countries in order to be eligible for
Microsoft Nonprofit Programs. Eligible organizations
must also operate on a not-for-profit basis and have
a mission to benefit the local community, which could
include but is not limited to:

Providing relief to the poor.

Advancing education.

Improving social welfare.

Preserving culture.

Preserving or restoring the environment.

Promoting human rights.

Establishing civil society.

For a detailed explanation of eligibility criteria and links to country-specific eligibility criteria, visit the
Eligibility page.

How can an organization verify whether it qualifies to receive Office 365 Nonprofit?

To be validated as an eligible nonprofit, you must register with the
Microsoft Nonprofits program.
Eligible organizations must hold recognized
charitable status as defined in their countries in
order to be eligible. Eligible organizations must
operate on a not-for-profit basis and have a mission
to benefit the local community. If an organization
is not eligible for Office 365 as a donation, it
may be eligible for other services depending on its
legal status and mission. For a detailed explanation
of eligibility criteria, visit the
Eligibility page.

How long does it take to find out if my request has been approved for a donation of Office 365 Nonprofit?

Microsoft works with its software donation partner
TechSoup Global to determine if a nonprofit
fits its broad eligibility requirements.
We strive to make eligibility determinations as quickly as possible, and the process can take up to 20 business days.
This timeframe can vary depending on nonprofit responsiveness to requests for additional documentation.
Required documentation
may include the certification or registration
provided the nonprofit’s governing body.
For example, in the U.S. we require a copy
of the IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter.

For how long is the validation good?

Organizations need to be re-evaluated for nonprofit
eligibility every two years. We will be defining
how this process is enforced and facilitated
in the coming months.

Office 365 Nonprofit is intended primarily for employees
of eligible nonprofit organizations. Nonprofit
members or beneficiaries are NOT eligible
for Office 365 Nonprofit licensing. Nonprofits
may license volunteers that have significant
fiduciary or managerial responsibilities
for the organization, such as members of
the Board of Directors. A volunteer of an
eligible nonprofit organization can receive
a license for Office 365 ONLY if they meet
ALL THREE of the following tests:

The volunteer is accountable for specific
activities and results within the
nonprofit organization that are defined
by a written volunteer position description.

The volunteer’s role with the nonprofit is
a year-round ongoing role or is a
seasonal or part-time role that reoccurs
annually.

The volunteer will not use Office 365 for
personal uses that result in income
to the person who is volunteering.

Existing customers

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How does an existing commercial Office 365 customer sign up for one of the new nonprofit offers?

Commercial customers wishing to transition to a nonprofit
offer should speak with customer support to understand
the options available to them and ensure a smooth
transition. Users that have commercial licenses that
become approved for nonprofit offers will still retain
their commercial licenses. Existing
customers may locate their support contact information
here.

Users that have commercial licenses that become approved
for nonprofit offers will still retain their commercial
licenses.

How would a religious organization who signed up for Office 365 Nonprofit E3 under the Pilot transition to the Office 365 Nonprofit E1 offer?

Customers in this category should now have the Office 365
Nonprofit E1 offer visible to them in their Office
365 admin portals, with the ability to transfer users
to the offer from the License Management tab. Religious
organizations who have been paying for an Office
365 Nonprofit E3 subscription may be eligible for
a credit for the unused portion of the subscription,
subject to Microsoft credit policy.

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